


Forever And Always

by So_Ginelle



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Forever and Always, M/M, Major character death - Freeform, Marriage, Parachute, Sad, proposal, trigger - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-23
Updated: 2013-12-23
Packaged: 2018-01-05 18:38:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,982
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1097316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/So_Ginelle/pseuds/So_Ginelle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Niall sets up dinner for Liam and himself, but he realizes something is horribly wrong when Liam doesn't show up after an hour of being late. Based off the song "Forever and Always" by Parachute</p>
            </blockquote>





	Forever And Always

Drawn curtains, a dark room, and a lump huddled underneath a pile of blankets signaled that someone was sound asleep in the middle of the day, soaking up the time allotted in order to be awake for later that night. But, the sleeper would soon be awake as a pesky, shrieking phone alarm sounded, waking the male from his nap. From underneath the mass of blankets emerged a hand, quickly searching and frantically attempting to turn off the annoyance. But that was when he realized he set the phone on the dresser so he would have to get up. With a groan, a dark figure pushed blankets and sheets off of himself before turning on the bedside lamp, rubbing the sleep from his eyes before standing up to find the phone.

As he made his way to the dresser, he flipped on the light and grabbed the phone, shutting the alarm off and smiling to see a text in his messages, a number he would always be glad to see popping up in his phone. ‘Hey, how was your nap? :)’

Niall rolled his eyes, but the smile never left his lips as he started to respond back, looking down at the ground to slip his feet into his fiancé’s slippers. ‘Great. I’m still sleepy tho. How was the meeting? (:’ The boy went out into the living room slowly, picking up his fiancé’s hanging carelessly from the couch and slipping his arms into it, loving the feel of the heavy material hanging from his shoulders and keeping him warm.

He slipped his phone into his sweatpants pocket – which were also Liam’s – before making a turn into the kitchen. He planned on surprising Liam with dinner, something he rarely did because he was an awful cook. But, he could follow directions and hopefully make a simple dinner for Liam to come home to so he didn’t have to cook when he got back. His phone buzzed in his pocket and he fished it out as he opened up the fridge. ‘Boring as always. I will be glad to get home. :P’ Niall snickered, agreeing with Liam’s statement that he would be glad when he got home. He stayed home from work, feeling sick, but he convinced Liam that he should go to work anyway, even if Niall really did want him to stay home and curl up with him.

Niall pulled out the chicken from the fridge, setting them down on the counter before grabbing the broccoli and shutting the door, hearing the containers rattle inside the fridge. He quickly sent a reply back to Liam, the smile still on his face. ‘I’ll be glad too. Don’t pick up dinner, by the way. I’ve got it. (:’ Niall set his phone on the counter and started to get everything around, sliding around and grabbing different pots and pans.

‘Reeealllyyyy? Just don’t burn the house down. (; I’m sure it will be great.’ Niall read as he chopped up the broccoli and put it in the pan.

He wiped off his hand on a towel before saying ‘:P thanks Li. I love you too. Hurry up and get home!!’

The reply was quick. ‘Haha, I do love you. :) More than anything. And I will! I’ll see you in an hour.’

He laughed a bit and shot back another reply. “I do love you, by the way. (: And I can’t wait.”

With that, Niall nodded and put his phone back in his pocket, continuing to make dinner. He cooked the chicken and the broccoli, and started the pasta when it was time to. And with only five minutes to go before Liam got back, he was setting everything on the table and finishing cleaning up the kitchen, trying to make it all perfect for his boyfriend. He was actually really excited about having dinner, even if he hadn’t felt the greatest. He leaned against the back of the chair, staring at the door in anticipation to hear that familiar purr of an engine pull into the driveway, a car door opening and closing, and three steps up the front porch of the apartment. The door would open, and there Liam would be, pulling up his jacket and greeting him, the smile on his face as he sniffed around the room, trying to determine what Niall had made for him.

Blinking a bit, Niall looked around, unsure of how long he had been staring at the door, waiting. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, and let his eyebrows rise for a second before looking back at the door to be sure Liam hadn’t come in. He was ten minutes late. But maybe there was traffic? That was always possible, and Niall shrugged, turning back to the food and wincing a bit. It wouldn’t be very good if it was cold, now would it? He picked up the plates and took them back out to the kitchen, sticking them in the microwave and checking his phone. Liam always called if he was running late, even if it was just ten minutes. Niall knew, because he always told Liam it was fine and that he didn’t have to call if he was running ten minutes late. But he always did. Did it finally break through to him that Niall didn’t mind if he was a few minutes late?

Pacing a bit, he kept checking his messages to be sure Liam hadn’t sent him one. Five more minutes passed, and Niall sent Liam a text, starting to worry. ‘Hey, babe. Almost home? (:’ He took a breath and slid his phone into his pocket, deciding to go out into the living room and he took a seat on the couch. Liam would be home soon. There was no reason to worry. His stomach churned a bit as he reached for the remote, flipping on the television just to ease his mind and fill up the silence. But if anything, it just reminded him that Liam wasn’t there with him to watch, or to sit on his laptop. He flipped the television off, leaning back into the couch.

He looked back at his phone once more, realizing that Liam was already twenty-five minutes late, and now Niall was panicking. Liam surely would have tried to contact him, right? Now he was starting to wonder if maybe Liam’s phone was off, or maybe even dead. Sighing, he dialed Liam’s number quickly, pressing the speaker to his ear and listening intently. After six rings, a voice he had been longing to hear picked up, and for a second, Niall was relieved, until he realized it was just the answering machine. “Hey, it’s Liam. I must be busy. Sorry about that! I’ll call you back as soon as I can. Leave your name and number if I don’t have it, okay? Bye now!”

Taking a deep breath, he said “Hey, Li. Just me… Uh, just curious where you were. Dinner’s getting cold, babe. Haha… Call me, alright? I love you.” Niall ended the call and stared at the face on his screen for a moment, running his thumb over it. It was Liam’s, but it disappeared when the screen on his phone switched to his background picture, one of the two of them. He stared at the picture for a while before he dialed Liam’s number again, the phone ringing again and again until it went to voice mail. This time he didn’t bother leaving a message, and Niall ended the call and set his phone down. It had been more than half an hour now, and Liam hadn’t tried to contact him at all. What if something happened to him and Niall had no idea about it?

Niall grabbed his phone and stood up, zipping Liam’s sweatshirt up and wrapping his arms around his torso as he shuffled through the apartment, trying not to think about what could have happened. If anything serious happened to Liam, Niall would never let himself live it down. He would forever hate himself for not calling Liam, or for not asking him to stay home. As he paced, he tried to remember all the times Liam had been late. Each and every time, Liam called him. There was one time that Liam couldn’t call him, and Liam had someone else call him to let him know. Liam always contacted him. The latest he had ever been was 35 minutes or so when he got held up at work and there was an accident on his way home, and it was slowly moving past that point.

Scrolling through his contacts, Niall’s eyes landed on Liam’s boss’s number, and he pressed send. He rarely called the man, but it was in there in case of emergencies, and Niall was worrying now. As the phone rang, the man picked up on the third try, question lacing his voice. “Hi, Niall? Something I can do for you?” he asked, and Niall gulped a bit.

“Hi, Mr. Anderson. Yeah, uh… Liam left already, right?” he asked, rubbing the back of his head.

There was a bit of a silence, and Niall felt his heart beating furiously in his chest. “Yeah, he left about an hour and a half ago… so did I… Why, is everything okay?” he asked.

Quickly, went to the window to see if maybe Niall had missed him. Maybe Liam fell asleep in the car, or he couldn’t get into the driveway for some strange reason. Sighing, his eyes closed when he realized his car wasn’t there. “Yeah, he’s just late is all. I’m sure you know as well as I that he’s never late, and if he is, he always apologizes…”

The man on the other end of the conversation cleared his throat. “Yeah. Well, if I hear from him, I’ll let you know you called, and I’ll give you a call back, alright? I hope you hear from him soon.” The line went dead, and Niall sighed a bit. This wasn’t like Liam at all, and it was making him extremely nervous. He had a few more calls to make. This was starting to get really serious.

Niall dialed the number to Liam’s best friend, whose house was on the way from where Liam worked to their apartment. The phone rang a couple times, and the phone picked up just like the last one did. “Nialler!” he said, and Niall laughed a bit. Andy was a great friend to both of them, and he liked Andy a lot, always treating him well. “You two are coming to my birthday, right? Party at the club! I think I told Liam but he didn’t answer me back…” Niall couldn’t even get two words out before Andy started off the conversation.

“Yeah, of course we are. Couldn’t miss it. Hey, Liam didn’t stop over there, right? I know he did the one night when I said I was going to be late…” Niall started to pick at his fingers, the nerves coursing through him becoming too much.

“No, not that I’m aware of. I’ve been home for the last two hours, so unless he came over before then, no.” Andy sounded a bit uneasy. “Did he call you?”

Niall pinched the bridge of his nose, squeezing his eyes close. There had to be some kind of explanation. “No, he hasn’t called, and I am freaking out, mate… I tried calling him a couple times and he didn’t answer.”

Andy sighed a bit. “Did you call Anderson?” Niall could hear Andy shuffling in the house, it sounded like he was pulling a jacket on. Niall didn’t want Andy going out for any reason, if it involved Liam, but it was sweet that he cared about Liam like this. “I wouldn’t put it passed him to call a last minute meeting.”

Unfortunately, that wasn’t what it was. Niall sat down on the end of the couch after he finished pacing, feeling his heart clench in his chest. “I already called him. He left over an hour ago…”Niall said, his voice going soft, cracking at the edges. It felt unnatural to breathe right now. Something was seriously wrong.

“Just take a deep breath, okay? I’ll try calling him and I can check with Zayn. I’m sure everything is fine. I will call you the second I hear something. If you hear from him, tell me so I can kick his arse for not calling you.” Niall let out a shaky, uncomfortable laugh at that, nodding as if Andy could see him. But he knew that Andy couldn’t and he gave him a low reply. “I will call you back.” With that, Andy hung up the phone and Niall ended the call on his end, letting the phone fall into his lap.

Could something really have gone wrong? He refused to think about it. Liam would walk through that door with a huge apology, and Niall wouldn’t even give him time to shut the door before he was in his arms, hugging him tightly for dear life. The problem was, the longer time went on, the longer Niall realized that it wasn’t going to happen.

Suddenly, the phone was ringing, and Niall grabbed it quickly and scanned the number, his brow furrowing in confusion as he pressed the answer button. “Hello?”

On the other end, Niall could hear a beeping noise, and a soft voice emitted from his phone. “Is this Niall Horan?” She asked.

“Yes, this is he,” Niall said meekly, his face paling just a bit. He didn’t have time to take these kinds of calls, but it was eating away the agonizing minutes that Liam wasn’t there. “Can I help you?” He asked, his voice sticking in his throat.

There was a short pause on the other end before the lady took a breath. “My name is Jessica  
Stanfield. I am a registered emergency room nurse at Saint Thomas hospital. I’m calling to inform you that there has been a car accident. Liam Payne is here in critical condition, and…” That was all Niall heard before he dropped the phone from his ear, the clattering of the plastic hitting the wooden surface of their apartment floor. Niall was frozen. Liam was in critical condition after a car accident. Niall may not have been completely in tune with his medical terminology, but he knew for a fact that it wasn’t a good thing.

He didn’t even bother to pick the phone up or change into something else. He grabbed his car keys and sprinted out the front door, not even sure if he had shut the door behind him. Liam was more important than his personal belongings or anything in that flat. When he got in the car, not soon enough, he turned it on and started to drive, not even buckling his seatbelt before backing out of the driveway like a mad man, setting down the road as fast as he could go.

This couldn’t be happening right now. This seriously was not happening. It was a cruel, heartless dream torturing his mind. It had to be, right? Liam was not dying. Liam was alive and well and Niall was making things up. He picked up pace, going through two stop signs and a red light, his turns erratic and completely out of control. When he saw the flashing red and blue lights behind him, he cursed loudly and banged on his steering wheel, pulling over and parking the car, his head going forward to hit the cold wheel in front of him. A sob ripped through his chest, tearing him apart quickly.

Niall couldn’t wait for this cop, so he pushed open his door, putting his hands out to signal that he wasn’t armed. The cop told him to get back in his car, but he didn’t listen. “Sir, you need to get back in your car.”

“Y-you gotta help me. Please…” Niall pleaded, desperately. “I’ll pay whatever bloody ticket you want me to but you have to help me get to the hospital. My fiancé is in critical condition…” He choked out, his fists balling up and his eyes pinching together. He didn’t want to believe it himself, but the police officer had to believe him. Niall couldn’t wait anymore.

“Well shit… Get in your car, and wait for me to pull out in front of you. I will escort you to the hospital,” he said, turning back to his car before Niall thanked him. Niall hopped back in his car too, shutting the door swiftly and waiting not so patiently for the officer to pull out.

Liam wasn’t dying. He couldn’t be dying. This wasn’t supposed to happen this way. They were engaged to be married. They had even set a date and they had started planning it all out. Niall couldn’t lose him. He had just claimed him for himself…

___________________  
Six months previous  
It was a very cold, frosty winter evening, and Niall pressed his side against Liam, turning a little to take advantage of his boyfriend to shield himself from the wind. Liam chuckled a bit, wrapping his arm around Niall’s shoulder to protect him from the cruel wind. They were walking along the moonlit path along the lake, the moon creating a strong reflection against the water’s surface, and even beautiful in the absolutely freezing weather. “Maybe we should get inside?” Liam suggested, and Niall nodded furiously, laughing in the process.

Leading down the path stood a figure that Niall couldn’t quite make out. At first, he hadn’t quite noticed the red ribbon trailing on the path, but he definitely noticed it now. It swirled around and followed the path, and Niall looked to Liam, who hadn’t seen the red ribbon on the ground. “Liam, do you see that? Or is it just me?” He asked, pointing to the ribbon on the ground.

Liam’s eyes perked up, and he glanced at what Niall was pointing at. “Hmm, that’s curious,” he said softly, nudging Niall closer to it. “Maybe we should follow it.”

Niall nodded, temporarily forgetting about the cold nipping at his nose. He felt Liam standing behind them as the walked along the path, and as the ribbon moved along the path, it was illuminated by a lamp, and a piece of paper was taped to the ribbon. Niall looked at Liam curiously, but he just shrugged. “Maybe it says something,” Liam mused and Niall agreed, picking up the piece of paper and flipping it over.

Niall’s eyes narrowed as he scanned the paper. “You can be the peanut butter to my jelly.” Niall said, a bit confused. “Well that’s cute,” Niall said, laughing a bit, setting the paper back down and being sure to tape it back to the ribbon. Liam laughed a bit too, taking Niall’s hand as they continued down the path, another lamp lighting up another piece of paper.

“You’ve read one, you might as well read that one too,” Liam said, encouraging Niall to read the second message. Niall shrugged, and decided to do it.

“You can be the butterflies I feel in my belly.” Niall thought about it, noticing the rhyme. “There has to be more,” Niall said, not bothering to put the paper down as he walked to the next street lamp. Liam was trailing behind him, and Niall was quick to pick up the next paper. “I’ll be the captain, and you can be my first mate. You were the chills I felt on our first date.” Niall bit his lip, noticing that there were two on the third one.

He looked back to Liam, who just shrugged again. “You’ve already seen three. Is there more?” He asked, but Niall just shrugged. The path was long, and the ribbon did seen to keep going. There were more street lamps ahead, but what if Niall wasn’t supposed to be looking at these?

But, curiosity overtook the male, and he continued down the path, picking up every message as he went, a smile spreading on his cheeks. “I’ll be your hero, and you can be my sidekick. You’d be the tear I cried if we ever split. You might be the rain from the clouds when it’s stormin’, but you’re the sun when it shines in the mornin’.”

Niall made his way to the next one, picking up the paper and seeing how the words changed a bit. Liam came behind him, reading over his shoulder curiously. “Don’t know if I could ever be with out you, ‘cause boy you complete me, but this time, I know now that I see, you’re all I need.”

Niall looked up, the ribbon continuing down the path. He made it to the paper, noticing that there were two papers here, labeled ‘one’ and ‘two’. He also noticed that the ribbon ended here, a heart curled up at tbe end of it. Niall picked both papers up, reading the first one. “You’re the apple to my pie. You’re the straw to my berry. You’re the music to my life, and you’re the one I want to marry.” It was all of a sudden clicking in Niall’s head that this was someone’s marriage proposal, and he was tearing the whole thing apart. He could easily put the papers back, but he had to see if he knew the people getting married.

Niall flipped over the last piece of paper, and his heart just about stopped, a gasp sounding from his lips. “Niall James Horan, will you marry me?” He read, his hands clutching the paper tightly as he turned around quickly on his heel to find Liam, but he wasn’t standing right behind him. But, as he looked, he was there, down on one knee, holding out a small box with a ring sitting inside, and Niall felt his heart swell in his chest. Liam wanted to marry him, and he couldn’t figure out what to say. He pressed his palms to his mouth, hiding his face as he rubbed it. He pulled his hands down to let his fingers cover his mouth, revealing his tear glistened eyes to Liam.

“Niall, I want you forever. I want you forever and always. Through the good, the bad, the ugly. We’ll grow old together, forever and always. I love you so much, and I never want to think about my life without you. So, Niall James Horan, will you marry me?” Liam was staring up at Niall, and for the first time in his life, Niall was speechless.

It took a moment, but he opened his mouth, still covered by his hands. “Yes,” he said, nodding his head as the tears slid down his cheek. “Yes I will marry you,” Niall said, closing his eyes and walking slowly closer to Liam. He felt Liam’s arms wrap around him, and he started to laugh, unsure why he was doing it. Niall leaned his head onto Liam’s shoulder, still unable to take his hands from his face.

“I love you,” Liam said quietly, and he pressed a kiss to Niall’s temple. He was holding Niall so tightly, and Niall had never felt happier in his entire life.  
__________________

Niall couldn’t tell you how painfully slow it felt to drive to that hospital. But when he finally got there, he parked the car and hopped out as he quickly as he could, running straight to the entrance and to the front desk, his fingers trembling. He didn’t even take the keys out of the ignition, the car still running. As he approached, the lady at the large desk smiled, but it quickly faded when she saw the tear stains in Niall’s face. “Li-Liam Payne. Where is he?” His hands slid onto the desk as the lady typed into her computer. “Where?” He asked again desperately. Tapping his hand impatiently on the countertop.

She scanned the monitor, looking up to Niall. “Are you a family member?” She asked too slowly for Niall’s liking.

Well, not yet, technically. “I’m… He’s my fiancé…” Niall croaked, watching her nod and stand up. She said for him to follow, and she started to talk. They walked down hallway after hallway as she paged someone, and another doctor or nurse met up with them, Niall quickly shaking the lady’s hand.

“Niall, I will talk you through what has happened. There was a car accident, and Liam has suffered from major injuries…” The doctor continued to tell Niall what happened, but this was all becoming too real for Niall. Liam was really, truly dying. Niall couldn’t breathe. He wasn’t certain how many halls they went down, or how many turns they made, but he looked as he saw one of Liam’s sisters sitting outside of the room, and Niall broke away from the doctor, heading to Nicola quickly. She was crying, and Niall crouched down in front of her, putting a hand on her knee. She looked up finally, and gasped just about.

Niall stood up, and she stared at him. “He… He’s been asking for you. Go!” She said quickly to get him into the room, since he needed to see Liam. Gulping back his fears, he put a bit of a smile on his face, walking into the room and his eyes trailing quickly to the bed where his baby was laying, attached to a heart monitor and other machines that cruelly caused Niall’s heart to constrict. He heard the beeping, each time it beeped causing Niall to tick a bit until two weakened and dulled eyes he used to know looked over to him, and that was what told Niall that there was no avoiding the truth.

Approaching Liam’s bedside, Niall gave a small smile to Mrs. Payne, seeing the tears that had been constantly built up in her eyes from the looks of things. It was hard to see such a strong woman like that reduced to so little and to look so weakened, but he turned his attention from her back to Liam, he saw as Liam smiled to him, which Niall returned as he took a seat next to the bed, pulling the chair closer so he could reach out and hold Liam’s hand. “Hi…” Liam whispered, letting his hand sit weakly in Niall’s and he tightened it just a little bit.

“Hi…” Niall said back in a whisper. His hand tightened almost too tightly around Liam’s, trying to contain his shaking.

“I’m sorry for missing dinner…” Liam said softly, his voice so weak and hoarse. He made a face contorted with pain, which told Niall that even talking hurt. It took Niall all he had not to break down, not to just cry and find a doctor to yell at them to make Liam better, but instead, he laughed at Liam’s attempt to be funny.

“It’s okay, Li. It didn’t taste very good anyway. That’s why I planned on taking that cooking class,” Niall said, glad to get a chuckle out of the man in the bed. “I’m sure the kids we plan on adopting would surpass me in cooking,” Niall added, trying so hard to avoid the truth. He knew he didn’t have long with Liam, and it was slowly eating his insides and heart up that he would have to live his life without him.

“Taylor definitely would. But I don’t know if Mason would. He might have your cooking skills.” Niall nodded, trying to imagine cooking with a little kid, surprising his dad and sister with a meal, even if it wasn’t that great. “Annabelle will be good at everything,” Liam added, and Niall chuckled. They had picked out the names of the the three kids they wanted to adopt, of course, if they were able to pick the names that was.

“Except sports. She will dance though,” Niall said, smiling softly at the thought of their daughter. “And they will all be musical. They will take guitar lessons-” Liam cut Niall off.

“Piano. They are taking piano,” Liam said, and Niall rolled his eyes, still smiling at Liam. “Or they can take both.”

Niall nodded and readjusted his hand in Liam’s, looking down to see how white his knuckles had turned. He was holding onto him for dear life, completely convinced that if he just held on and kept talking to Liam that everything would be okay. “And they will be great kids, very talented and very amazing.”

Liam nodded slightly. “They will love nature too. That’s why we are moving to the hillside house so they can appreciate it,” Liam said, and Niall chuckled, agreeing. He had always wanted a house in the country. “We have to get married first though.” That was when the room went silent other than the beeping heart monitor. They stared at each other, just appreciating their presence for as long as they could.

“Grandma will love to see the kids, so they better bring their guitars to the house all the time,” Mrs. Payne said, and Niall and Liam looked up to her with a smile, then back to each other.

Out of nowhere, Niall stood up, promising Liam he would be back momentarily. He wasn’t sure how long he had with him, but Niall had an idea, going to the desk in the ICU, getting the attention of the nurse. “Can you get the chaplain…? I… I know this sounds stupid, but I want to have a wedding ceremony with Liam. I think he would like it…” Niall said, knowing that there was no way to make it official and that Niall would never actually be Liam’s husband. But it was better than nothing.

The nurse nodded, dialing a number on her phone, and Niall thanked her before walking a bit down the hall to the waiting area. Just like Niall was praying for, there was a couple sitting, chatting quietly in the waiting area and he slowly approached, waving a hand to signal to them that he did in fact want to talk to them.

“Uh… I um… I know you don’t know me, and you have no reason to trust me… But… My fiancé is dying, and I know how much it would mean to the both of us if we could borrow your rings for just a little while… We were engaged to get married in the next four months… And I don’t have much time left with him…” Niall said, and he hadn’t realized he had started to cry, the shaking taking over his body. He kept his eyes on the couple, and the lady slid her ring off, handing it over to Niall, the man soon to follow. “Y-you don’t know how much this means to me… If you want… You can come watch.”

The couple kindly declined and said they could pick up the rings in a few hours. Niall nodded, telling them where he was and which room. He even gave them his phone number, even though that wasn’t helpful because he didn’t have his phone on him. Niall left the couple and went back to the room where Liam was, and Niall was almost sick to his stomach when he saw a nurse in there, but he quickly realized that she was the nurse that had called the chaplain. Liam looked over to the door, and smiled when he saw Niall approach the bed. “Want to get married?” Niall asked, and although it wasn’t quite the same, he could see the twinkle in Liam’s eyes, even if it was dulled by the lack of life he had left.

It wasn’t long before the chaplain was speaking, and he kept saying he had only performed two weddings in his life and this was certainly not his strong point, but they didn’t care. Niall held onto Liam’s hand Ruth holding the rings and Nicola and Liam’s mum, as well as Andy, Zayn, and a few other family members of Liam’s that had rushed in, watched the ceremony happen. Mrs. Payne smiled so brightly and Nicola held onto her hand as they watched, Mr. Payne sitting with his arms crossed and a grin on his cheeks at their antics.

The chaplain cleared his throat, getting the attention of everyone. “We are gathered here to unite these two hearts in the bonds of holy matrimony which is an honorable estate. Into this, these two now come to be joined. If anyone present can show just and legal cause why they may not be joined, let them speak now or forever hold their peace.”

There was a moment of silence, and the chaplain continued. “Liam James Payne, will you have this man as your lawful wedded partner, to live together in the estate of matrimony? Will you love him, honor him, comfort him, and keep him in sickness and in health; forsaking all others, be true to him as long as you both shall live?”

Liam nodded, and Niall almost broke down to see a tear sliding down his cheek, causing Niall’s own tears to spring from his eyes. “I will,” he said, and the chaplain turned to Niall.

“Niall James Horan, will you have this man as your lawful wedded partner, to live together in the estate of matrimony? Will you love him/, honor him, comfort him, and keep him in sickness and in health; forsaking all others, be true to him as long as you both shall live?”

Niall stared into Liam’s eyes, smiling as he nodded, completely blessed to even have this moment with him. “I will,” he repeated.

“Niall, if you will say your vows,” the chaplain said, motioning Ruth to come forward with the rings. Niall picked up the bigger of the two silver bands, taking Liam’s hand and slowly sliding the ring onto his finger. He didn’t care if he did this wrong. He just wanted Liam to be his.

He had started writing vows for their actual marriage, but he didn’t have them with him. So, he decided to just say what he wanted to say to Liam, his heart and mind ready to tell Liam everything he needed to. “I really don’t know what I am saying right now, but this is what seems appropriate. I vow to you to be everything I can be to you. I vow to you to never leave your side and to always be there for you in a time of need. I will hold you and guide you through life, and most of all… Liam, I will love you forever and always. You are my world, and I vow to always love you. I could never stop,” he said, staring back at Liam who’s eyes told Niall that it was time. He wasn’t ready to let Liam go.

The heart monitor slowed, and he heard a shushing in the room when Liam opened his mouth to speak.

Liam wasn’t very strong, even less than when Niall had first walked in. But when it was time to say his vows, he was able to do so, very slowly and quietly. “I will love you forever. I will love you forever and always. Please just remember that, even if I am not there. I’ll always love you, Niall… Forever and always…”

“I love you too, Liam…” Niall whispered. The heart monitor sounded a flat beep, and Niall stared ahead at the two eyes that were no longer moving. Liam was gone.

His shoulders started to shake, and Niall leaned over Liam, gently closing his eyes and leaning his lips against his forehead, still warm like it would have been if he were alive. His fingers shook, but they closed Liam’s eyes gently, finally putting him to rest.

After that, all he could remember doing was crying. His body hurt, his heart was against him as it continued to beat in his chest, and everything blurred from there on out. It just wasn’t fair. The darkness closed in on him, and it was all black, consuming him and-

“Wake up,” a voice said. Niall looked around, the darkness slowly lifting off of him, but not soon enough. “Please wake up,” the voice said again, this time a little more forgiving and soft. Niall recognized the voice, but it wasn’t Liam’s. No, he would never hear that voice again. He would never see that beautiful face or taste his lips. He didn’t want to wake up, but he knew he had to.

“Daddy, please…” That was when he snapped awake, the brightness of the room startling him, and his eyes adjusted to it. “Daddy, you’re awake,” the voice said, and Niall glanced over to see two big brown eyes staring at him, a head of beautiful brown hair properly messy as she sat there, smiling sadly.

Niall slowly sat up, rubbing his eyes and turning a little to look at his daughter. “You were crying again,” she said, and Niall knew he had been before she had said anything, wiping the wetness from his tears from his eyes.

“Sorry, sweetheart. Did I scare you?” He asked, opening his arms and she crawled towards him, sliding onto his lap and pressing her head against his chest, her little arms wrapping around his stomach, as much of it as she could. She was, after all, only five years old. Her head nodded against his chest, and he leaned down to press his lips against the top of her head. “I’m sorry. I had another bad dream,” he said, leaving it at that.

She looked up to him and he held her closely, smiling down to the precious little girl. “Was it about Liam?” she asked, and it took all of Niall’s strength not to shudder at the mention of his name by his daughter.

“Yeah, baby, it was. I miss him a lot,” Niall said. He would kill Taylor for telling Annabelle about him, but there was little he could do about his teenager. “Where is your brother and sister?” He asked as Anna scooted out of his lap, sliding carefully out of his arms.

She put her hands up and said “Making breakfast?” And Niall was quick to scoop Anna into his arms and run out of the room. They knew better than to cook without him watching.

As he went down the stairs, he let out a sigh of relief to see Taylor and Mason sitting at the table, eating lucky charms and drinking toast. “Morning, dad,” Taylor said with food in her mouth, and Niall chuckled. Even if she was adopted, which she was well aware of, she still picked up his habits of talking with her mouth full and stuffing far too much into his mouth. At the age of fourteen, she was already headed towards being at the top of her class. Yet, here she was, showing her lack of manners. “Grandma called. She said that you were meeting at her house today, or something. Does that mean I’m in charge?” She asked, and little Mason let out a whine. He was nine, and he knew very well that Taylor being in charge meant he was going to be in living hell.

“No, that means I am taking you all to Uncle Greg’s house and he will be coming over when you are ready to come over to Grandma’s” he said, taking a seat with Anna in his arms.

They all finished their bowls of cereal, putting the dishes in the dishwasher, and Niall chased the older two to their rooms to get changed and grab what ever they wanted to bring with them. He helped Anna get changed, and they headed to the car.

Right before Niall and Taylor got into the car, she tapped his shoulder, looking down at her feet. “Dad… I… I know that you go every year to… To see his stone and to put flowers down… But… Could I come this year too?” She asked, looking up to meet Niall’s eyes, who was a little curious to know her motives. “It’s just, it is so boring at uncle Greg’s, and Liam obviously changed your life… So I kind of feel like I should get to know who he was…”

Niall was speechless, his mouth parting at the absolute shock of what she was suggesting. But, he closed his mouth and slowly smiled, trying not to let the tears show in his eyes.

Every year since Liam’s death, Niall visited the stone and sat by it for a while, putting flowers down and saying hello, since he honestly felt like Liam was watching over him. But every year, he didn’t bring the kids, just because he was afraid to let them see him cry. But Taylor was fourteen. She could handle it. “Yeah. We can take your siblings to Uncle Greg’s, and we will go with Grandma and Liam’s family to go see his grave sight.” Taylor smiled, and Niall reached out to his daughter, pulling him into a hug.

“If he were still alive, he would have been my second dad, wouldn’t he?” Taylor whispered, and Niall couldn’t find the words to say. He just nodded, trying so hard not to cry for Taylor’s sake. “He must have been a good man if you picked him, because I know that you are the greatest father there ever was.”

Niall couldn’t help it, but that caused a tear to cascade down his cheek, and he slowly pulled away. He gave Taylor a loving smile, kissing her forehead gently. “He was the greatest man to ever live. And I will love him, forever and always, just like I love you.”

And with that, the two walked to their sides of the car, heading off into the day. Niall knew as he watched the road and the sky that Liam was watching them, loving all of them as he promised he would sixteen years ago.


End file.
